3. Sleepy Hollow (Tim Burton)
Gets Lost in the Shuffle Of: Edward Scissorhands, Big Fish, Alice in Wonderland, Batman, Beetlejuice, Ed Wood, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street When I think of Tim Burton's finest work, I'm always torn between
Ed Wood and this film. While I think
Ed Wood is the better film of the two, I feel
Sleepy Hollow is the best characterization of Burton as a director. It truly is all of Burton's genius (though some would scoff at that thought) wrapped up in a pleasantly disturbing little feature. In a lot of ways, this is the movie where all of the elements of his other films meet, nicely and neatly. It's wonderfully dark and humorous, but enchanting, magical, and spooky. A new spin on an old classic, with a perky, interesting take from Burton's go-to man, Johnny Depp, Burton directs this feature with the right amount of gusto, gore, and gravity to the script that he sometimes abandons for the sake of...well, being a bit off-beat. You may not see
Sleepy Hollow as one of the selections in a box set of Burton's work, and that's a damn shame.
"Villainy wears many masks, none of which so dangerous as virtue."